


You'd Be Surprised

by intolauren



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: AU??? slightly., F/F, F/M, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Some Humor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-03
Updated: 2015-12-08
Packaged: 2018-05-04 18:12:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5343650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/intolauren/pseuds/intolauren
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oliver gets more than he bargained for when his game of Never Have I Ever with Felicity takes and unexpected turn as she reflects on her college days...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so this is not strictly Olicity (actually it's more not than is) but I included some cute scenes between Oliver and Felicity at the beginning and end anyway because no matter what, my heart always comes back to them. I wasn't sure quite how to format this but I hope what I decided on in the end makes sense; please let me know if you can think of a better way that I could present this!

It was just after 10pm on a Friday when Felicity's phone rang. She was still at the office, like always. She had promised herself she'd be home by 4 at the latest today, but once again, she found herself behind her desk hours and hours after everyone else on her floor had gone home. She always got the most work done when everyone else had gone home which meant she often worked 16 hour days rather than 8, getting home some evenings when the rest of the city was fast asleep. In a weird sort of way, working at Palmer Tech reminded Felicity of her college days; doing minimal work during the day and depriving herself of sleep overnight to produce page after page of perfectly written work. The only difference now was that if she overdid it, she couldn't just send an email the next morning faking food poisoning and then spend the rest of the day catching up on sleep. Felicity was The Boss now, and if anything, employees were calling her at 6am with a variety of excuses as to why they couldn't make it in that day.

Pulling her eyes from her computer screen to glance at her phone, Felicity tried to refocus her eyes to see who was calling. After a few seconds of failing to readjust to something other than a 15" inch screen, she answered the phone anyway.

"Felicity Smoak speaking,"

"Oh hello, Miss Smoak, it's your boyfriend Oliver Queen here just wondering if you're actually going to be home at all this weekend or whether I should make other plans with other people,"

Felicity smiled and relaxed back into her chair. She should have known it would be Oliver, checking up on her.

"I'm sorry," she replied, stretching out the word sorry for several seconds.

"You should be! What if I'd made you dinner, expecting your arrival home at 5pm and it's still sitting there now, beginning to congeal?"

"Oliver, I'm never home by 5pm. If you'd done that I wouldn't feel guilty because you should have known better by now,"

She heard him chuckle softly and the sound made her save her work and begin to shut down her computer.

"Seriously though, when will you be home?"

"I'm leaving in the next 5 minutes, I promise. Did you eat dinner already? I can bring us some take-out or something?"

"Of course I ate already, it's after 10 at night, Felicity. I need to eat every two hours to keep from wasting away! But I am also not the kind of person to turn down a greasy pizza on a Friday evening so if you want to stop by a pizza place, it will not go unappreciated," Oliver laughed.

"Okay, got it. Anything else you want me to pick up on the way home?" Felicity replied, switching off the lights in her office and locking the door.

"Maybe stop by the gas station for chips and chocolate?"

"Why, are we having a sleepover?" she giggled, making her way across the dark and empty hallway towards the elevators.

"We live together, of course we're having a sleepover," Oliver laughed back.

"Good point, roomie,"

"Just hurry up and get home, okay? I miss you,"

"I'm getting in the elevator now, I'll be home soon. Love you,"

"Love you too,"

Smiling, Felicity hung up the phone and pressed the button to take her to the ground floor.

Several hours, a bottle of wine and 4 episodes of Scandal later, Oliver leaned over with a serious but somehow playful look on his face and asked,  
"This is dumb but have you ever played Never Have I Ever?"

Felicity laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Now that takes me back to college! Why, are you asking if I want to play now?"

"I guess,"

"Don't we already know practically everything about each other?"

Oliver smiled, and kissed Felicity's cheek.

"We do, but it'll be fun to see if there's anything we've missed out,"

"Whatever. I'm halfway to ridiculously wine drunk anyway so I'll agree to anything I bet,"

Reaching over to refill their glasses with wine, Oliver handed one to Felicity and turned so he was facing her on the couch. Felicity stretched her legs out across Oliver's lap and put on what she hoped was something along the lines of a Game Face.

"Never have I ever dropped out of school," she smiled, knowing Oliver would have to take a drink.

"Should I take a drink for each school I quit or will one large drink be enough?" he laughed, giving Felicity's legs a mini punch.

"I think one is enough, we don't have all night," she teased, raising her eyebrows at him.

Still laughing, Oliver took a long gulp from his glass.

"Never have I ever puked all over my date," Oliver smirked.

"We almost made it 2 years without you bringing that up again, Queen. It was one time and in my defence, the guy was a terrible driver and never went below 60 mph, even when I warned him I was prone to the occasional bout of motion sickness," Felicity shot back, feeling her cheeks flush.

"Drink up,"

Scowling, she took a drink.

"Never have I ever cried whilst watching Annie," Felicity giggled, after a few seconds.

"I had dust in my eye!" Oliver argued back.

"You so did not,"

"Okay fine but the real question here is why did you not cry?!"

"It's just a movie," Felicity shrugged, grinning devilishly at Oliver.

She watched his face as he took another drink, smiling to herself at how utterly adorable it had been to look over and see him wiping his eyes at the credits rolled. In fact, when she thought about it, it had been one of the first times she'd ever seen him cry, and definitely the first and only time she'd seen him cry at a movie.

"Never have I ever waited until the second or third date to kiss someone," Oliver laughed.

"Never have you ever waited until the second or third date to sleep with someone," Felicity said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, we didn't sleep together on our first date!"

"No but we hardly had a second before we did! And besides, I kissed you on our first date so I'm not going to have a drink,"

"I kissed you, there's a difference,"

Glaring at Oliver, Felicity took a quick drink.

"Never have I ever had sex with more than one person in the same night," she muttered, frowning.

"Hey, isn't the point of the game to find out new things about each other, not saying things we already know the other person has done?"

Felicity laughed.

"It's just so funny calling you out on dickish things you've done, in all honesty. The worst you can do is embarrass me, I've always been an angel," she teased, fluttering her eyelashes at him.

"An angel, really?"

"Really,"

Oliver thought for a minute, Felicity watching him intently, wondering what he was going to say next.

"Never have I ever kissed someone of the same sex,"

Felicity felt her cheeks blush before he'd even finished the question. She wasn't sure whether he expected her to take a drink or not but from his genuinely curious expression, she guessed the latter was the most likely. She watched his eyebrows raise as she took a sip from her glass.

"Are you honestly surprised?" she asked, smiling shyly.

"I honestly am,"

"Some girls are cute," she shrugged. "It's always baffled me that so many women are straight if I'm honest,"

"Some girls are very cute," Oliver agreed, chuckling.

"I guess I take back my previous statement of always being an angel. I did a few things in college that would probably surprise you,"

"Like what?"

"This isn't how the game works, Oliver,"

"Can't we just not play anymore and you tell me things you think would surprise me? That sounds like a more fun game,"

"And what do I get out of this new game?"

"That depends what you tell me," Oliver smirked.

"Fine, what do you want to know?" Felicity said, rolling her eyes again.

"Tell me more about the girl you kissed,"

"My first year of college, she was my first roommate. She was my first in a lot of ways, actually... I mean, I came to college with absolutely no real life experience, if you know what I mean. The only thing I'd ever known was books, computer screens and staying in by myself every night. So when I went to college and I suddenly had to spend basically every living moment with other people, I guess I just struggled to adapt. Anyway, one day my roommate, Laura, came back and found me crying. We'd barely said two words to each other the first week of living together because I avoided her like the plague; I'm really good at pretending to be asleep or in the bathroom, it seems. By the way, stop me at any point if I go off topic or you get bored, okay?"

"I love listening to you talk, I won't get bored, I promise. Stop worrying," Oliver smiled, placing his hand on Felicity's thigh.

Felicity smiled back and took a sip from her glass before continuing.

"Anyway, she came home one day and found me crying and for the first time, I couldn't avoid her. She just came over and sat with me and held my hand while I cried and for some reason, the fact that she was holding my hand when I'd avoided her all week made me cry even more, because I'd been the most ignorant bitch and now here she was trying to make me feel better!"

*

"Why are you being nice to me?" Felicity asked once she'd managed to calm down a little, wiping her face on her sleeve.

"Because you're my roommate! And if we aren't nice to each other then how are we ever going to live together?" Laura replied, squeezing Felicity's hand.

"But I've been ignoring you all week," she sniffed.

"Oh, is that what you've been doing? Honestly, I'm glad because I was beginning to think I'd simply been roomed with a human practicing animal hibernation,"

Despite herself, Felicity laughed. Laura was funny. The kind of funny that came naturally, the kind of funny where actual jokes weren't ever needed to make people laugh.

"I'm sorry for ignoring you... I'm just not too good at this whole, college thing I guess. I didn't realise there'd be quite so much socialising involved," Felicity admitted, leaning over to grab a tissue.

"Listen, if it's any consolation, I wanted a single room too but my parents aren't made of money. So I'm guessing we're both actually in the same situation! Meaning we're both going to have to learn to put up with each other!" she smiled, nudging Felicity's shoulder with her own to show she was joking about the last part.

"Yeah, I guess we are," Felicity agreed.

"So... I'm Laura, nice to meet you," she said, holding out her hand.

Felicity took it and shook it. "I'm Felicity," she smiled.

"Cute name, it suits you,"

"It does?"

"Yeah, you're cute so it suits you that your name is also cute,"

"Um... thanks?" Felicity blushed.

"My pleasure! Do you have a nickname you prefer?" Laura smiled.

"I've never really had a nickname. Everyone just calls me Felicity,"

"Well then Felicity, do you have any plans tonight? That don't involve pretending to be asleep?"

"Of course not,"

"You do. You're coming out with me! I have to head out now to meet my friend for dinner but I'll be back around 8 so be ready for then, okay?"

"Sure, where are we going?"

"I haven't decided yet. Wear something cute!" Laura yelled before closing the door behind her.

The room was silent and empty again and the quiet wrapped Felicity up like a blanket. Laura had been right; Felicity had applied for a single room too but it didn't quite fit the budget. So a double room was the next best thing. She silently chastised herself for avoiding Laura all week when in just 5 minutes she had become her only friend. Felicity's shyness and social anxiety had controlled her life for as long as she could remember and no matter how much she told herself that she wasn't lonely and was just meant to be on her own for the rest of her life, every time someone was kind to her who wasn't her mother, she realised just how much she needed a friend.  
Felicity was in awe of how easily Laura had been able to talk to her and make her smile. If the roles had been reversed and Felicity had walked in to find Laura upset she probably would have just stood awkwardly in the doorway, stuttered some sort of sentence that was meant to be comforting and then left as quickly as she'd arrived to hate herself for the rest of the day for being completely incompetent when it came to people.   
Shaking her head in an attempt to stop her mind filling with self deprecating thoughts, Felicity stood up and walked over to her closet. Laura had told her to wear something cute and even though their plans were hours away, given Felicity's track record, getting ready and leaving the house could take up every single second from now until then. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and wondered what to do with her hair. 

 

Several hours later, Felicity was ready and waiting nervously on her bed for Laura to get home. She hadn't been sure what outfit was “cute” exactly, but she hoped a black skater skirt, an off-shoulder white shirt and grey ankle boots somewhat qualified. She never wore much make-up and had opted for some soft pink blush, dark black mascara and a coat of pale red lipstick, and had changed her glasses from her usual blue pair to a black pair to match her skirt. She'd left her long, dark hair natural, letting its soft waves cascade over her shoulders and down her back. She'd contemplated painting her fingernails but had given up almost instantly on the idea considering her most notorious (and grossest) anxious habit was chewing on her nails so any attempt at nail polish would be pointless.   
Felicity fidgeted as she waited, her brain automatically going over everything that could possibly go wrong tonight. She'd skipped dinner; the last thing she wanted was the end up throwing up everywhere if her anxiety levels got too high, as they sometimes did. As her mind raced, she tried to go over some breathing exercises and techniques she and her mom had been practicing in the weeks leading up to her moving away to college. 

Moments before Felicity was about to change into her pyjamas and get back in bed to cry all night, Laura arrived home. She didn't bother to announce her arrival; after all, this was her home as much as it was Felicity's, something Felicity felt she'd never quite get used to. The first thing Laura did was take in Felicity's appearance, something which made Felicity feel both uncomfortable and appreciated at the same time. 

“You look so cute!” Laura exclaimed after looking her up and down. 

“I had no idea what you even meant when you told me to dress cute,” Felicity admitted, smiling. 

“No, I love it! It's cute but not conventionally cute. Like you. You're cute but not in a conventional way. That's a compliment, by the way,” Laura laughed, undoing her own boots and changing into a pair of ballet flats. 

“Thanks,” Felicity replied shyly. 

“I feel like I have to change now!” Laura joked. 

“Don't, you look really nice,” Felicity offered. 

Laura was wearing a short black dress that hugged her every curve. Not that she had many curves; she was one of the skinniest girls Felicity had ever seen outside of a magazine, but rather than looking sick and malnourished like the girls in magazines, Laura looked a kind of healthy that practically glowed and Felicity instantly envied her. Laura had short hair, her blonde locks just skimmed her shoulders in soft curls, a look Felicity knew she'd never be able to pull off. 

“Check me out all you like,” Laura teased, reapplying her nude lipstick in Felicity's closet mirror. 

“Oh no, I wasn't-” 

“Dude, I'm kidding,” 

Felicity laughed nervously. 

“I'm sorry, I just... it's probably no surprise to you that I've never had a lot of friends so yeah, I know I suck at this,” 

“Chill, it's okay. Lets just go before you have a nervous breakdown, okay?” Laura laughed. 

Felicity nodded in agreement and tried to remind herself to breathe regularly as they left their room and headed down the stairs. 

 

“Aren't you even a little curious as to where I'm taking you?” Laura asked, after she and Felicity had walked in silence for half an hour. 

“Um, I figured you wouldn't tell me even if I asked,” Felicity replied, slightly breathless from having to take two paces for every one of Laura's. 

“Well I can tell you that we're not going to a frat party or anything, I promise,” she laughed, reaching into her bag for something. 

“Good, I'm not too great at parties. Of any kind... How much further is where we're going?” 

“Not too far,” Laura smiled. 

Felicity wasn't sure whether Laura had picked up on the fact that she was struggling to keep up but thankfully, she seemed to slow down to Felicity's pace and walked next to her.  
“What do you drink?” Laura asked after a few minutes. 

“I don't really,” 

“At all?!” 

“Alcohol and anxiety don't exactly mix,” Felicity laughed. 

“Well you have me to look after you tonight, so here,” Laura replied, handing Felicity a small bottle of vodka. 

Simply holding the bottle of clear liquid in her hand was making Felicity nervous but she found herself unscrewing the lid anyway and taking a sip. Her mouth immediately burned followed by her throat as she swallowed it down and Felicity struggled to keep herself from spluttering everywhere. 

“Rookie mistake,” Laura laughed. “Taking sips burns so much more than holding your breath and swallowing a load of it,” 

“Does anyone actually like the taste of alcohol?” Felicity laughed back, wiping her mouth. 

“Probably not, but most people don't drink because it tastes good, they drink to have fun. Or to forget about stuff. Taste doesn't matter much to most people,” Laura replied, taking a long gulp from her own bottle. 

Felicity watched as she drank and tried to copy her, the thought of “forgetting about stuff” sounding too perfect to miss out on. Her second attempt was slightly more successful and her mouth didn't burn as much. She knew the alcohol couldn't possibly be having an effect on her already but she could have sworn that her head felt lighter and her hands weren't shaking quite as much as they usually did in any kind of social situation. 

“So what stuff are you forgetting about tonight?” Felicity asked. 

Laura smiled and rolled her eyes. 

“Maybe I'll tell you after a few more of these,” she laughed, somehow without much humour at all. 

Felicity smiled back, somehow understanding. Turning her attention back to trying to figure out where they were going and was surprised to find the neighbourhood coming to an end halfway up a steep hill. A thin line of trees ran up either side of the hill and an unmarked road was the only indication that there was, or had ever been, anything at the top. Laura began to ascend the hill and Felicity followed behind, finishing off the rest of the vodka as she did so.   
Thankfully the slope wasn't too long and they reached the top within a few minutes. Felicity wasn't sure what she'd expected but a lone bench, a public telescope and a trash can certainly wasn't it. 

“I used to come up here with my ex a lot,” Laura explained. “You can see the entire city on a clear day and nearly all the way into space on a clear night. Like tonight,” 

Smiling, Laura looked up and Felicity followed her gaze. Above them was the most clear night sky Felicity had ever seen. As far as her eyes could see in every direction were thousands of shimmering stars, twinkling innocently in the darkness, light-years away, yet somehow right there, just out of reach. It was one of the most stunning sights Felicity had seen in her life. It almost made her laugh, knowing that so much beauty was always just above her, yet most nights she was too busy staring at a screen or a book to even step outside and look; it wasn't funny, but it felt it in that moment. Seeing the sky like that made Felicity realise with breathtaking intensity what a small and insignificant part she played in the world, yet simultaneously making her feel larger than life. 

“Cool, right?” Laura smiled.

“Cool is definitely one word to describe it,” Felicity giggled. 

“I think you need another drink,” Laura laughed, handing Felicity another of the small bottles of vodka.

Grinning, Felicity took it from her and swallowed most of it down in one go. 

“Okay so you were right about it burning more the less you drink in one go,” Felicity chuckled, sitting down on the bench. 

Laura took a seat next to her, unscrewing the cap on her own bottle. 

“So, Felicity... tell me something about you,” she smiled, taking a drink. 

“What do you want to know?” 

“What's your favourite colour? What's your favourite movie? What's been the best day of your life so far? How well do you get on with your mother? Are you single?” Laura winked as she asked the last question and Felicity couldn't help but blush. 

“Um okay, my favourite colour is purple except when it comes to clothes in which case black is the only colour I truly love. My favourite movie is The Breakfast Club usually but sometimes I prefer something darker like Carrie or Evil Dead. The best day of my life so far would have to be graduating high school just because that place and everything it represented made me doubt myself beyond belief so getting to walk out of there for the last time was the happiest moment of my life. My mom and I get on okay, I mean we're not best friends or anything but she's all I've got considering I haven't seen my dad for about 5 years and she works really hard to make sure I have a good life. And duh, of course I'm single. I mean, have you seen me?” 

“Of course I have, I already told you that I think you're cute,” 

“What about you? Tell me about you,” Felicity replied, avoiding Laura's comment. 

“Yellow is my favourite colour, Clueless is my favourite movie, the best day of my life was the day I met my favourite band, I don't really talk to my mom anymore or my dad and yeah, I'm single too,” 

“I thought you said you come up here with your boyfriend?” 

“I said I used to come up here with my ex, past tense, gender neutral pronoun,” Laura laughed. 

“Oh, I'm sorry,” Felicity mumbled, suddenly feeling awkward. 

“It's cool. It was months ago now. I'm guessing you're not into girls, right?”

Felicity coughed slightly and swallowed the rest of the vodka from her bottle. She was definitely feeling drunk now but it wasn't enough to disguise that the moment had suddenly become more intense than she could have anticipated. 

“Um, I don't know. I mean, I've never really been with either. But I've always just assumed I'm straight, like, I've never thought about being with a girl or anything,” she stuttered, wishing she had another drink. 

“Well, do you think I'm cute?” Laura asked, smiling. 

Felicity bit her nails and tried to think of something to say. 

“You don't have to answer that by the way, I was just teasing. You're just so adorable when you're nervous, you know?” 

“Do you have anymore to drink?” Felicity asked, avoiding Laura's comment again. She wasn't sure but it was beginning to feel like Laura was flirting with her. 

“Are you sure? I really don't want to be responsible for your hangover tomorrow, I mean, you do have a class at 9:30 remember?” 

“If we're going to have this conversation, I need another drink,” Felicity giggled, nudging Laura with her shoulder. 

What was she doing? Was she flirting back? For perhaps the first time since she was a child, Felicity's mind wasn't racing with excuses for her to leave and she took that as a good sign, that maybe Laura was the kind of person she needed to be around as much as possible. Laughing, Laura handed her over another drink, a bigger bottle this time that she said they could share. Felicity took a long drink and then handed it back. 

“So, do I think you're cute?” she asked, smiling. 

“Honestly, I was kidding,” Laura giggled. 

“You're... different. Like, I've never met anyone like you. You're just so comfortable with yourself and so confident and I admire that so much. You just look good, in everything, you know? Even first thing in the morning! Because you're so skinny but in the right way and everything about you just suit everything. So yeah, I guess I do think you're cute,” Felicity said, trying desperately to calm her heartbeat so that it wouldn't burst into her mouth. 

“I didn't know you'd even noticed me over the last week but it seems you've been secretly checking me out?” Laura chuckled, the porcelain skin on her cheeks flushing slightly.   
“I envy you a lot, and I couldn't stop looking at you because I like to torture myself,” Felicity admitted, taking another drink. 

“You really don't see yourself clearly at all, Felicity. I've never met anyone as utterly unaware of how good they look,” 

Felicity snorted as Laura took a drink, certain she was kidding with her now. 

“Like, you sit around studying or playing video games with your glasses pushed up your nose and your hair piled on top of your head and no one would ever know that you look like this underneath it all,” Laura said, gesturing her hands from top to bottom of Felicity. 

“The only person who has ever called me pretty is my mom, and mom's don't count anyway. So thanks,” Felicity smiled, feeling her neck and cheeks go warm. 

“God, you're so fucking cute when you blush like that,” Laura laughed. 

“Stop it, I hate it! I hate that I can't feel anything without everyone knowing! Just for once it'd be nice to feel warm inside without having to turn red on the outside!” 

“I love how readable you are! It's the only reason I asked you out here tonight. Because I've seen you blush too many times this week to just pretend you haven't noticed me,” 

Felicity smiled, awkwardly, and was grateful that Laura handed her the bottle back just so she'd have something to do with her hands. 

“If I'm making you uncomfortable, I'll stop flirting with you,” Laura smiled. 

“I'm always uncomfortable, it's nothing personal,” Felicity smiled back. 

The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds before Felicity shivered, unsure whether it was from the chill in the night air or the intense anticipation of the moment.   
“Are you cold?” Laura asked, rubbing Felicity's arm, her eyes not leaving Felicity's.

“I'm not sure,” Felicity admitted, enjoying the feeling of Laura's warm skin against hers.

“I really want to kiss you,” Laura whispered, tracing the side of Felicity's face with her other hand. 

Their faces were so close, Felicity could smell the alcohol on Laura's breath. 

“I've never done this before,” Felicity whispered back.

“It's just like kissing a guy, only better, I promise,” Laura laughed softly, tucking a strand of Felicity's hair behind her ear. 

“No, I mean I've never done this before, like, I haven't kissed anyone before,” Felicity felt her face blushing as she spoke and she was glad that if anything, their faces were too close for Laura to be able to tell. 

She felt Laura sigh, her warm breath on her face giving her goosebumps all over her body. Laura moved her hand onto Felicity's thigh and rested it gently against her before closing her eyes and leaning even closer to, so that their noses were touching. Felicity wanted to close her eyes but she was too mesmerised by the moment to think straight and she could only watch as Laura leaned even closer still and pressed their lips together.   
The moment their mouths touched, Felicity shuddered and her eyes closed automatically. Laura's lips were soft and gentle, not seeking anything for the moment, simply resting right where they were. Warm energy flowed right through Felicity's body and she moved her hands from where they were resting on her lap, to Laura's back, trailing her fingertips along her hips as she moved them. Pulling her softly towards her a little bit more, Felicity opened her mouth and let Laura kiss her properly, the way she could tell she'd wanted to do ever since their lips met. Laura slid the tip of her tongue along Felicity's bottom lip, asking for entrance inside her mouth, her hand on her thigh squeezing slightly. Opening her mouth wider, Felicity let Laura's tongue collide with hers, tasting alcohol and a hint of peppermint, and heard a soft moan escape Laura's throat. Laura danced her fingertips along the inner-side of Felicity's thigh, trailing them up to meet the hem of her skirt, ducking underneath it slightly and then back down again to her knee. Not really knowing what to do with her own hands, Felicity kept them on Laura's lower back, stroking her thumbs back and forth against the thin material of her dress. Felicity wasn't sure whether it was the alcohol or the close human contact, but every nerve in her body felt as though it were on fire, every inch of her skin practically burning, aching to be touched.   
All too soon, Laura pulled back and simply intertwined her fingers with Felicity's, moving them from her back, back to her lap again. Felicity couldn't speak, could only focus on Laura's lips, her eyes not moving from them, wanting desperately to meet them with her own again already. 

“Are you okay?” Laura whispered, smiling. 

Forcing her eyes up to meet Laura's, Felicity smiled back. 

“Why did you stop?” she whispered back.

“I wanted to make sure you were alright,” 

“I'm fine,” Felicity promised, squeezing Laura's hand. 

“You sure you've never done that before? You're a fucking good kisser,” Laura giggled. 

“I swear I've never done that before,” Felicity chuckled back, feeling for the first time, unashamed of the heat running up her neck and along her cheeks. 

Laura traced Felicity's neck with her fingertips, causing Felicity to first close her eyes and then blush deeper, and she felt Laura giggle softly, her breath once again warming her face. Before Felicity could apologise, Laura's lips were pressing against her neck and Felicity's words caught in her throat and all that came out was a quiet moan, a noise Felicity could never have imagined herself making. She uncurled one of her hands from around Laura's and danced her fingers along the warm skin of her arm, causing Laura to pull her closer, pressing their bodies together, her lips still resting on Felicity's neck. 

“I feel like I'm fucking in love with you,” she mumbled against Felicity's neck, the vibrations of her voice sending goosebumps along her body. 

“Mmmmm,” was all Felicity could reply as she wrapped her arms tightly around Laura's waist. 

*

“Soooo, um, yeah, that was the first time I kissed a girl,” Felicity laughed somewhat awkwardly, glancing at Oliver's face for the first time in a while since she'd been telling her story. 

“You don't have to stop there,” Oliver chuckled back.

“Why, what are you hoping happens next?” Felicity smirked, raising her eyebrows. 

Oliver leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips. 

“As much as I love having you all to myself and as much as I hate the though of someone else getting to kiss you and touch you the way I do, I can't help but hope you went back to your room and um... discovered more things about each other,” 

Felicity laughed and kissed the end of Oliver's nose. 

“I hate to disappoint you but all that happened when we got home is that we passed out cold and didn't wake up until lunchtime the next day. That was the first and only time I ever slept in and accidentally missed class,” 

“So you never kissed her or anything again?” Oliver sounded disappointed and Felicity snorted. 

“Duh, of course I did. Trust me, we did a lot more than kiss. But that's another story,” she teased. 

“Is she the only girl you've been with?” he asked after a few thoughtful seconds. 

“Yeah, I guess. I mean, we were never actually with each other, we just messed around. She was my best friend but then also not at the same time, if that makes sense?”

“But she's not the only girl you've ever been attracted to, right?” 

“Of course not! I already told you, girls are magical and majestic creatures who were put on this earth to be appreciated and worshiped and told how fucking gorgeous they are,” Felicity laughed. 

“Amen,” Oliver chuckled back, leaning down to press his lips against Felicity's again.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was originally meant to be a one-shot thing but it's forming into quite a long fic in my head and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. It's just so much fun to explore this side of Felicity and I love connecting the chapters with cute little Olicity moments! This chapter is more of a filler chapter, just so I had something to update, because it would have been super long if I'd joined the next part on as well. Nevertheless, this was fun to write and I hope it's as fun for you to read!

"Felicity?"

Felicity was halfway between awake and asleep when Oliver's raised whisper interrupted the silence. It had been a long night, a long week in fact, and she was exhausted. Mumbling quietly in response, Felicity felt Oliver shift beside her.

"Okay so I was just thinking about your story, you know, the one you were telling me the other day about Laura and I have a question. Well, another question,"

Opening her eyes, Felicity found Oliver propped up on one elbow, smiling down at her.

This wasn't the first time he'd just happened to have a question about her story with Laura but rather than come out right with his question, Oliver would scoot around it for as long as possible before Felicity practically figured it out on her own. He'd asked her several brief questions that she guessed were leading him up to his actual question, the one he was so skilfully dancing around for reasons she wasn't entirely sure of. It wasn't uncommon for Oliver to just not know how to ask things, but Felicity couldn't understand what was getting him so damn flustered up inside. Which made for his question at this ungodly hour when she'd otherwise have been asleep for hours, rub her slightly the wrong way. 

"Can't it wait? I'm really tired," she complained, pulling the quilt up to her chin and closing her eyes again.

"Well, it can, but I really want to ask you now," Oliver replied, pressing a kiss to the end of Felicity's nose.

Forcing her eyes open again with an over exaggerated sigh, Felicity sat up, knowing that while Oliver might not know how to directly ask whatever was bothering him, he certainly wouldn't let it drop. And that when he finally did get around to asking, his question might require her to further elaborate. 

"What is so important that you absolutely must ask me now?" she asked, her annoyed tone only half serious.

Oliver shot her a guilty smile before pulling her into his chest. Settling herself against him, Felicity smiled in spite of herself, knowing she'd probably stay awake for days if it was what it took to make Oliver happy. 

“Had you ever thought about girls in that way before you met Laura?” he asked after a few moments of comfortable silence. 

“Honestly, I hadn't. But then again, I hadn't really thought about anyone in a more-than-friends kind of way, just because when I was younger I had absolutely no self confidence, so in my own opinion, I didn't see the point in letting myself be attracted to anyone. I look back and it seems so pathetic now because there wasn't really that much wrong with me- I mean, I was just a bit geeky, but I still am and somehow I managed to sweep you off of your feet...” 

Oliver laughed and squeezed her tightly.

“You did indeed,” he chuckled, lacing their fingers together. 

Felicity squeezed his hand in response and pressed a chaste kiss against his neck. 

“So, if you hadn't thought about anyone in that way, how did you know there was something there with Laura? I mean, obviously at some point in life, no one had had romantic feelings for anyone so that sounds dumb to ask, but I just mean-” 

Felicity giggled, her heart melting as it always did whenever Oliver was the one struggling to form coherent sentences. She felt him laugh softly too, his warm breath hitting her back. 

“I already told you, Oliver. Laura was my first in a lot of ways. And if you're trying to ask me how I knew I was attracted to her when I'd never been attracted to anyone, much less another girl before, it's the same way you know you're not attracted to guys even though you've never been with one... you just know, you know? That's kind of how sexuality works,” 

Wriggling out from his arms, Felicity sat up and leaned back against the headboard. She watched Oliver deep in thought for a few moments. 

“Okay, right. That makes sense, actually. I like how you put that,” he smiled.

Felicity smiled back, nodding. 

“She taught me a lot of things about my sexuality, you know? Believe it or not, I wasn't always this comfortable talking about it. Nor was I always quite so confident in any aspect of sex, actually,” she laughed, enjoying that she could practically see Oliver's mind heading straight into the gutter. 

“I do find that hard to believe. You've always been so... vocal in the bedroom with me,” Oliver smirked. 

“You bring out a special sort of confidence in me, Oliver Queen, and you and I both know that,” she glared back. “But if you absolutely must tease me, I learned a lot of the things I know from Laura,” 

Felicity watched his face, his expression ranging from surprised to curious to downright turned on. 

“Are you ever going to elaborate on what happened after your first kiss with her?” he asked, no... pleaded.

“I told you, nothing happened. At least not immediately anyway,” 

*

As much as Felicity had wanted to see Laura the week following their kiss, fate seemed adamant that they were not going to get to talk anytime soon. Laura had gone to class the following morning, something Felicity had not managed to do due to experiencing her first hangover, and must have come home at some point during the morning whilst Felicity was sleeping off her nausea and left a note, explaining briefly that she had to go home for a few days. A “family emergency” was all she had written by way of explanation and it had made Felicity paranoid for three entire days now. 

Her mind instinctively thought Laura had run away, had left as quickly as possible to get away from her. She had tormented herself endlessly that she'd said something stupid or been too shy or been a really bad kisser. She worried that Laura had realised she was wrong about her and had foolishly realised after she'd kissed Felicity, rather than before. She'd been a near constant shade of crimson ever since Laura left, silently chastising herself for being so stupid. 

Felicity had never been with a girl before, had never been with anyone before, and she didn't know how she was supposed to feel. 

For as long as she could remember, Felicity had felt stupid and dirty and ashamed whenever she caught herself thinking about anyone in more than a platonic way. She didn't know why, even to this day, but she guessed it was something to do with protecting herself. Given her mother's track record with men, Felicity just didn't have any reason to believe anyone stuck around very long, so why open herself up to the hurt and disappointment that almost always came with relationships? So to say that her night with Laura had taken her by surprise was the biggest understatement of the year. 

Felicity had never questioned her sexuality. In fact, she'd always just tried to tell herself she didn't have one. It was easier to switch off feelings of lust, longing and desire that way. She told herself that she just didn't like people that way... and that was that. Externally anyway. Internally, as much and as viciously as she tried to deny it, she was still a teenage girl with hormones all over the place and boys were everywhere she looked. The ones in her classes everyday were easy to ignore; they were ballsy and arrogant and disgusting, always talking about genitals, being that their own or indeed, those of the opposite sex. They repulsed her, and from what she heard around her classes, they had the same effect on most of the other girls at school too. But those boys weren't the only members of the opposite sex that existed. Felicity read a lot of books, and was subjected to many handsome characters, she passed gorgeous men in the street or saw them on TV, and her brain did a thing every time. That thing ranged from “he's cute”, to “I bet he's a good kisser,” to “I'd like to have him bend me over a table,”. The last thought happened very rarely, and Felicity was glad because she felt like she'd needed a cold shower each time so far. The first time was such an abhorrent shock to her system she actually felt sick for awhile; she hadn't even realised that she knew vocabulary like that.   
So while Felicity couldn't completely expel the occasional sexual thought from her mind, those thoughts had always remained strictly on the opposite sex. She had seen a lot of beautiful girls in her life, she envied and admired practically every woman she saw on TV or read about in books, but that was all.   
And that was the reason Felicity had never questioned her sexuality, because she had never had reason to do so. 

Before now, of course.

Felicity didn't know whether it was Laura or the alcohol or a combination of both that had caused her to act so... uncharacteristically, and it didn't matter how many times she ran through that night in her head, it still wasn't making any sense. It wasn't even the kiss itself that was confusing the crap out of her, well, it was, but it was everything else too; the way she'd opened up to Laura about having never been kissed, the comfort she felt expressing herself around her, the way she'd somehow managed to verbalise how much she admired her, the simple length of the face to face conversation they'd shared. Felicity just didn't open up, about anything, to anyone. It was why she had never had that many friends in school; people weren't always that keen on those that were reluctant to offer comment or opinion on the big stuff, let alone people who were too guarded to even add to a conversation about the latest episode of a popular TV show. Not that Felicity watched much TV growing up, books didn't read themselves, you know?, but that's beside the point. The point was that talking wasn't something Felicity did very often nor was it something she did articulately whenever the occasion arose.   
Being with Laura that night had been the most natural and relaxed Felicity had ever felt in her life, and that was perhaps the main reason she couldn't stop thinking about it. 

Felicity couldn't wait for Laura to get back so they could talk about what happened. Somewhere deep in her brain, Felicity knew it hadn't been a big deal to Laura; she probably kissed people all the time and didn't think twice about it, but it was a big deal to Felicity, and she knew somehow that Laura would be able to understand that. 

 

It was another two days before Laura came home. Felicity had been swamped with assignments all day that Friday and when she finally finished and dragged herself from the library, it was after 9:30 at night. She hadn't been the only student working late, others will still typing or scribbling away even as she left, but there were considerably less than usual given that it was a Friday evening and most people her age were out drinking and having unprotected sex. The thought made Felicity shudder; it still baffled her that people her own age could be so reckless. She felt like an entirely different species around them sometimes. 

Felicity was deep in her own thoughts as she unlocked the door and seeing Laura standing by the window made her jump and a loud squeak escaped her throat. Upon hearing Felicity's less than graceful return, Laura laughed. 

“You're back,” Felicity smiled, once she had her heart rate back to normal. 

“Thank god, I swear, my mom is ten times more irritating now that I know how peaceful life can be when she's not around all the time,” Laura smiled back, rolling her eyes. 

Felicity smiled again and tried to think of something to say. She felt suddenly too warm in her jacket but the part of her brain that over thought everything kept telling her that it would look suggestive if she took it off now. The same part of her brain that had been telling her for the last 5 days that the reason Laura had left so suddenly was because of her. 

“I hope everything was okay,” Felicity said softly, moving her hair from around her shoulders to fall down her back, trying to give her quickly warming neck some much needed air. 

“Everything was fine,” Laura replied, shrugging. 

Felicity sensed that it wasn't fine, but she didn't push it. If Laura wanted to tell her, she would, eventually. The silence returned and it was uncomfortable. Felicity had been used to silence between them before that night, the silence that hung around when Felicity was pretending to be asleep or just pretending to be so busy studying that she hadn't noticed Laura come home. That silence was easy because it wasn't laced with apprehension and unanswered questions. This silence was different. 

Looking down, Felicity stated to pick at her nail polish, red chips of paint flaking onto the carpet. She was definitely getting far too hot now and if she didn't learn how to ignore the persistent, over-thinking part of her brain, she was probably going pass out. 

“Felicity, are you okay? You're like, really red,” Laura asked suddenly, her voice thick with concern. 

Felicity nodded her head rapidly and fanned her face with her hand, suddenly realising how light-headed she'd become. 

“Are you sure?” Laura asked again, raising her eyebrows. 

Felicity tried to reply, tried to reassure Laura that she was fine, but her ears started to ring and her stomach clenched with nausea. Wildly reaching her arms out for anything to lean on or steady herself with, embarrassment started to mix with the heat that was rapidly beginning to consume every inch of Felicity's body. 

Felicity could hear Laura speaking to her but the ringing in her ears was so loud now that her brain felt like it was going to combust. She squeezed her eyes shut tight and tried not to fall over, and that was the last thing Felicity remembered before her knees buckled and she passed out. 

*

“Why are you laughing?” Felicity snapped, her cheeks crimson just from talking about the memory. 

“I'm sorry but you're telling me now that not only have you puked all over your date, you've also passed out on one too?” 

Felicity blushed harder and covered her face with her hands, groaning into the warm skin of her palms as Oliver's laugh became hysterical. 

“None of this is the slightest bit funny,” Felicity said into her hands, trying not to laugh herself. 

“You have certainly upped your dating game, Smoak, let me tell you,” Oliver replied, darting his fingers into her ribs to tickle her. 

Felicity squealed and grabbed his wrists with both hands, trying to push him away. 

“Oliver don't, you know I hate that!” she squeaked when he effortlessly freed her grasp and resumed his tickling. “Please can I continue my story?” 

Oliver coughed in an attempt to stop his laughter and forced a neutral expression onto his face. 

“Sorry, sorry,” he said, clasping his hands in his lap. “Please, carry on. I'm desperate to find out what happened after you dramatically lost consciousness,” he grinned, unable to keep his expression neutral for long. 

“Can I just say, before I continue, that Laura was not my date. She was my friend and my roommate. Just, FYI,” Felicity dead-panned, glaring at Oliver. 

“Sure. Whatever you say,” Oliver replied, snorting. 

Felicity slipped her pillow for underneath her and turned to whack Oliver over the head with it. 

“I'm serious,” she frowned, threatening to smile at any instance thanks to the cute and mock-pained expression on Oliver's face following her thwack with the pillow. 

He blinked slowly before holding up his hands. 

“Okay fine, sorry. She was your roommate, nothing more, nothing less,” 

Felicity stared back at him for at least 30 seconds before his grin crept onto his face again. 

“Just your roommate who you made out with every now and then,” he muttered, quietly but still loud enough for Felicity to hear. 

“God, you are such a... BOY,” Felicity groaned, hitting him over the head with her pillow again before laying down and pulling the duvet up over her own head. 

She could hear him giggling to himself for a long time before the bed beside her shifted and she felt his arm wind around her. 

“Felicity? I really am sorry. I didn't mean to tease you,” Oliver whispered.

Felicity grinned to herself under the covers; she wasn't even mad, not really. Oliver was exasperating sometimes when he teased her relentlessly, but she always knew he was kidding and deep down, it always thrilled her to be the reason he smiled and laughed, even if it was at her expense. 

Pulling the covers from over her face, she smiled at him, their noses touching now she was outside the duvet. 

“I know you're sorry, Oliver, but I also know that you did mean to tease me,” she laughed. “I don't exactly help myself, I know that,” 

Oliver relaxed beside her and her stomach fluttered as it always did when she realised how easily she could get him to calm down. She felt him laugh softly. 

“I love you, you know?” he whispered, pressing a kiss to the end of her nose. 

“I love you too,” Felicity smiled. 

Oliver's eyes fluttered closed before he sleepily whispered, 

“Maybe you can just finish your story over breakfast or something,” 

Felicity grinned. 

“This from the man who was so absolutely desperate to ask me a question earlier!” she giggled, snuggling into Oliver's chest and closing her own eyes. 

The last thing she felt before she fell asleep quickly was Oliver's arms tightening around her, his lips pressed to her forehead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave me a comment/review! Every little helps!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not sure what the response to this is but I appreciate comments and reviews either way!


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